Hamilton Farmers Market

Hours of Operation

Tuesday:	7 am - 6 pm
Thursday:	7 am - 6 pm
Friday:	8 am - 6 pm
Saturday:	6 am - 6 pm

The Market is closed on Mondays,
Wednesdays, Sundays and
all statutory holidays

History of the Market

The Hamilton Farmers' Market was originally founded in 1837, at the corner of York & James Streets.

The Market has been in its current location 55 York Boulevard next to the Hamilton Public Library since August 1980. The modern architectural design provides a mezzanine level and lower level, consisting of 176 stands and approximately 80 stallholders. All indoors!

There are rows of farm fresh produce from sun-ripened tomatoes, fresh picked apples, nuts, dried fruit, bright coloured flowers, lettuce crisp and fresh, the choicest cuts of meats, fish - the finest from the sea, fresh baked goods, tangy cheeses, tropical fruits and even coffee and donuts.

Specialty products are also imported from many other countries around the world. This excellent product mix is offered each market day and attracts regular customers from the local community and tourists from all over the world.

This is the current Hamilton Farmers Market entrance

After you enter the market this is the view from upstairs

down stairs there is mainly the produce and baked goods, flowers, nuts, etc.

This is on the second floor. Here there are butchers, cheese stalls and chicken stalls

This Bakery is downstairs. They have every kind of baking.

We had cannoli and M&M Cookies.

We get chicken from upstairs it is free range. The best chicken you can find.

Rhubarb, Apple, Cherry and Cinnamon Cobbler

Dan found this recipe on Gourmet Traveller. He added cherries to it. When he makes it again he would double the cobbler part so it is thicker. This combination of fruit was really good. The cherries off set the tartness of the rhubarb and the apples added a nice texture as well. This will definitely be made again. In typing out the recipe, Dan forgot to add the sugar and cinnamon on the top of the cobbler. So, do not forget to add yours. :)

Rhubarb, Apple, Cherry and Cinnamon Cobbler

Ingredients

Filling:

2 cup rhubarb, cut into 2 cm lengths
2 cups apples, peeled, cored and cut into wedges
2 cups Cherries, sliced in half removing pit.
(You can put any combination of these you wish.)
1/2 cup sugar
3 tbsp. honey
2 tbsp corn starch
1 lemon, juiced

Buttermilk and Cinnamon pastry:

1 cup flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 tbsp. sugar
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
4 tbsp. butter, coarsely chopped
1/4 to 1/2 cup buttermilk

Directions:

Fruit Filling:
Preheat oven to 375F. Rinse rhubarb, drain and transfer to a bowl. Add apples, cherries, sugar, honey, corn starch and lemon juice and stir to combine, then place in a oven-proof baking dish.

Buttermilk and cinnamon pastry:
In bowl combine flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, 1 tsp. cinnamon & butter. Use pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add buttermilk until dough comes together, transfer to a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth.
Roll out to 4mm thick (1/8" thick), use a 7cm (2 1/2" pastry cutter). Cut out rounds and arrange over rhubarb mixture, overlapping slightly. Brush tops with a little extra buttermilk.
Combine remaining sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl, scatter over pastry and bake for 45 to 50 minutes or until fruit is bubbling and pastry is golden and risen.

Serves 6

Serve with cream or ice cream

Double Crunch Rhubarb Crumble

This recipe appeared in the Daily Sentinel Review many years ago in Woodstock. Kim Quigley was a food writer for the paper. I had not tried this before this weekend. It was ok. Dan said he liked it. It was easy to prepare.

Double Crunch Rhubarb Crumble

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cups rolled oats
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup melted butter
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. grated nutmeg
pinch salt

1 cup sugar
2 tbsp. cornstarch
1 cup cold water
1 tsp. vanilla
4 1/2 cups chopped rhubarb

Stir together flour, oats, brown sugar, butter, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt and mix until crumbly.
Press half of the crumbs over the bottom and up side of a greased 9-inch baking dish.



Blend together sugar and cornstarch in saucepan. Stir in water and whisk out any lumps. Bring to a boil, stirring, reduce heat to low and cook, whisking constantly, until thick, smooth and clear -- about 5 minutes.

Remove from heat
Stir in vanilla

Spoon rhubarb over bottom layer of baking dish with crumble mixture in bottom. Drizzle cornstarch mixture over the rhubarb and top with remaining crumble.


Bake 350F for 1 hour or until top is golden brown.
Serves 8.

My Mother's Day Gift

Hope everyone had a wonderful Mother's Day. I spent Saturday with my daughter. It was a really nice day, we went to the farmers market to get meat at Rudy's. I am going to features different farmers markets we visit. So you can look forward to that coming I hope this week. We took some pictures with the new camera the kids bought me for Mother's Day, Nikon D40.
I bought the zoom lens 70-300mm. AF-S VR Lens. This week I will be adding more photos to our photo blog. In getting the camera I have a real appreciation for people that take bird pictures. They are not easy to get photos of. You get it just about set and they fly to another part of the tree, it takes a lot of patience, I will have to work on that part.

Dan Has A Blog Now on Gardening

Dan has started a blog on his vegetable garden this year.


Urban Veggie Garden

Apple Crisp Cupcakes

Last week I made these great little cupcakes. We really enjoyed them, they were moist. The apples added a great texture and the streusel in the centre was a great combination. They tasted good without icing. Dan made a caramel butter cream for them. It was ok with his icing. I will be including the icing they suggested to put on the cupcakes instead. In looking at the photos I took I realized I did not take a final pic....sigh...so I will make them again this week and add it.... :)

Apple Crisp Cupcakes

Preheat oven to 350F.
Muffin pan, lined with paper liners

Batter:

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
2 eggs
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/3 cup milk
1 apple, peeled, cored and diced

Streusel:

3/4 cup light brown sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
3 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
pinch salt

Batter Directions:
In a small bowl, mix together flour, baking powder and salt.

In large bowl, whisk together sugar, butter, eggs and vanilla until smooth. Alternately whisk in flour mixture and milk, making 3 additions of flour and 2 of milk, beating until smooth. Stir in apples.

Streusel Directions:

In a bowl, whisk together brown sugar and cinnamon. Add butter and rub in with fingertips until mixture holds together in small, moist clumps.

Scoop about 1/2 of the batter into prepared pan.

Sprinkle streusel over batter. Scoop remaining batter over streusel.

Bake in preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown and tops of cupcakes spring back when lightly touched.
Let cool in pan on rack for 10 minutes.
Remove from pan and let cool completely on rack.
Top cooled cupcakes with frosting.

Caramel Frosting

1 cup whipping cream (35%)
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 light corn syrup
1 tbsp. unsalted butter
1/4 tsp. salt

In heavy saucepan, combine cream, brown sugar, corn syrup, butter and salt. Heat over medium high heat, stirring, for 2 minutes or until sugar is dissolved and butter is melted.

Reducd heat to medium. Cook, stirring often, for 10 to 15 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat. Stir until smooth and pour into a bowl. Let cool in bowl, stirring occasionally. Caramel will thicken further as it sits and cools.

Stir cooled caramel well and spread or spoon over cooled cupcakes.